TUPPER LAKE—Senator Betty Little and Eugene W.
Zeltmann, president and chief executive officer, New York Power
Authority (NYPA), announced today the donation of two generators to
the Village of Tupper Lake to help prevent rolling blackouts during
the peak winter season. The announcement was made adjacent to the
McLaughlin Ave. electric substation in Tupper Lake where the
generators were recently installed.

“While you can’t do much to avoid occasional
whiteouts during a Tupper Lake winter, we can avoid rolling
blackouts with the help of these new generators to bolster the
village’s power supply,” said Zeltmann. “Under Governor Pataki’s
guidance and support, the Power Authority, Senator Little and Tupper
Lake officials worked together to meet the vital electricity needs
of this community’s residents and businesses.”

“I want to thank the New York Power Authority
for helping Tupper Lake secure these two generators which provide
peace of mind for all of us," said Senator Little (R, C,
I-Queensbury). "Loss of power is much more than an inconvenience on
a cold night when temperatures plummet. It's a threat to safety and
puts lives at risk. The generators will eliminate the need for
rolling blackouts and get us safely through the winter months as we
continue to work on a long-term solution to address the demand
issue."

“We truly appreciate the continuous efforts of
Senator Little and the New York Power Authority to resolve
transmission issues experienced by the Village and these generators
help by playing an important role in offsetting rolling blackouts
this winter,” said Sandra Strader, mayor, Village of Tupper Lake.
“The Village Electric Department and the company who worked with us,
Aggreko, are to be commended for a job well-done by having the
generators ready-to-go before the height of the heating season.”

The two 1,250 kilowatt diesel-powered generators
were built and installed by the international energy company Aggreko.
John Bouk, electric superintendent, Village of Tupper Lake, oversaw
the installation of the generators and worked closely with Aggreko.
Aggreko provides power supply, temperature control and compressed
air systems to customers in diverse industries around the world.
Aggreko also designs, develops and assembles its own equipment.

Together, the generators will be able to supply
up to 2,500 kilowatts of electricity—about 10 percent of Tupper
Lake’s peak power demand—as the need arises. They should help to
avoid rolling blackouts or other interruptions to the village’s
power supply this winter.

No tax money was used to pay for the generators
as Senator Little worked with the Governor to secure $85,000 in
funding to pay their cost. The funds are from a grant from New
York’s share of the Petroleum Overcharge Restitution Fund—created as
the result of a legal settlement by the federal government with a
number of oil companies for excessive charges in the 1970s. The
Power Authority is the administrator of this grant to the village.

The Village of Tupper Lake operates its own
municipal electric system and purchases its electricity from the New
York Power Authority. The village uses a single 46-kilovolt Niagara
Mohawk transmission line to bring that electricity into the
village. Without enough capacity on that line to reliably meet the
area’s growing needs, rolling blackouts became necessary. The Power
Authority is working with Senator Little, Mayor Strader,
Superintendent Bouck and Niagara Mohawk to solve this problem.